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Eurozone crisis: Clarke rejects EU power grab call Eurozone crisis: Clarke rejects EU power grab call
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Ken Clarke has warned Tory eurosceptics not to expect powers to be returned from the EU at this week's summit. Ken Clarke has warned Tory Eurosceptics not to expect powers to be returned to the UK from the EU at a key summit.
The justice secretary said the prime minister should focus on resolving the eurozone crisis and talk of "wider structures" would be a distraction. EU leaders will discuss plans backed by France and Germany for a new EU treaty to deal with the eurozone debt crisis, at a summit in Brussels this week.
David Cameron has said he will not agree to any EU treaty change "that fails to protect our interests". Some Conservatives want the UK to seize the chance to get some powers back.
Germany and France are pushing for treaty changes enshrining new budget rules for eurozone members by March. David Cameron says he will block any changes that do not "protect our interests" but Mr Clarke said he did not expect "any transfers of powers".
Mr Clarke, the most pro-European Conservative cabinet minister said href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5606a946-201a-11e1-8662-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1fomGwuZY" >in an interview with the Financial Times it would be a distraction to open up discussions about the "wider structures of the union". Germany and France are pushing for EU treaty changes enshrining new budget rules for eurozone members by March - the plan will be discussed on Thursday and Friday by EU leaders.
"We're not going to renegotiate any transfers of powers, in my opinion," he said. 'Right safeguards'
He said Britain should be prepared to accept "proper" financial regulation from Brussels but he rejected the idea of an EU "Tobin tax" on financial transactions. In an interview with href="http://www.timesplus.co.uk/tto/news/?login=false&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thetimes.co.uk%2Ftto%2Fnews%2Fpolitics%2Farticle3250303.ece" >the Times, UK Prime Minister Mr Cameron said sorting out the eurozone's problems as quickly as possible was the most important issue for Britain's national interest.
"It's the devil's own job to collect," he said, and added that New York and Hong Kong would not follow suit. But he said it was his job to defend British interests and, should there be a treaty change involving all 27 members of the EU, he would look at "the right safeguards for Britain".
UK protection "If we are changing the treaty that applies to all EU countries and allowing the eurozone countries to have new rules, it is also important that there are rules to keep the single market fair and open for key industries for Britain, including financial services."
The prime minister says he will seek to return powers to the UK at the right time but many Conservative MPs want him to go further. Signalling that he was prepared to veto treaty changes, he added: "Our colleagues in the EU need to know that we will not agree to a treaty change that fails to protect our interest."
In href="http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/" >an article for the Times, Mr Cameron wrote that the 17 eurozone countries could decide to reach agreement on their own, adding: "Our colleagues in the EU need to know that we will not agree to a treaty change that fails to protect our interests." He also said that a treaty change involving only the 17 eurozone members but which used EU institutions - like the European Commission and Court of Justice - would also "clearly require safeguards".
Some observers have argued that a treaty of 17 states "would be more effective if it had access to the institutions of the EU such as the European Court of Justice and the Commission," he told the newspaper. The prime minister has said in the past that he would like to see some powers repatriated from the EU - particularly in employment and social policy - in the future, but did not mention them in his article.
"These institutions belong to all EU states and their use outside the treaty would clearly require safeguards." Tobin tax
"Our asks will be practical and focused. But eurozone countries should not mistake this for any lack of steel." Justice Secretary Mr Clarke, the most pro-European Conservative cabinet minister, href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5606a946-201a-11e1-8662-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1fomGwuZY" >told the Financial Times he did not expect any repatriation of powers as a result of this week's summit: "No, we're not going to renegotiate any transfers of powers, in my opinion."
The UK's priorities are protection for the single market and the UK financial services sector, he said. He said Britain should focus on "how to maintain the financial stability of the western world", adding it would be a distraction to try to open up discussions about the "wider structures of the union".
Germany and France are developing a plan for greater fiscal integration among the eurozone's 17 members ahead of a crucial meeting on Friday. He also said Britain should be prepared to accept "proper" financial regulation from Brussels but he rejected the idea of an EU "Tobin tax" on financial transactions.
Downing Street has said that none of the proposed changes being discussed would trigger a referendum in the UK, as they would not constitute a significant transfer of power from Westminster to Brussels. Downing Street has said that none of the proposed treaty changes would trigger a referendum in the UK, as they did not involve a significant transfer of power from Westminster to Brussels.
And, in a leaked report ahead of the meeting, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy has suggested tougher rules to tackle the eurozone debt crisis need not, for now, require a treaty change but be managed by a "fiscal compact" that would not require lengthy ratification by parliaments. But some Conservative backbenchers disagree. Douglas Carswell told the BBC on Tuesday: "This is an unprecedented opportunity for us to get the deal that we want. The issue is can we trust ministers and mandarins to negotiate the deal on our behalf? I believe not.
But some Conservative MPs say an agreement involving just the 17 members of the eurozone would alter relations with the EU as a whole and require a referendum. "The only way that we can get the deal that is in the national interest is if ministers and mandarins know that the result has to be put to the people in a referendum."
The former Labour foreign secretary David Miliband, has said tough talk by the prime minister could lead to less influence. In a leaked report ahead of the meeting, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy has suggested tougher rules to tackle the eurozone debt crisis need not, for now, require a treaty change but be managed by a "fiscal compact" that would not require lengthy ratification by parliaments.
"David Cameron faces a real trap from those in his own party who are spoiling for a fight that would bring Britain out of the European Union," he said. The former Labour foreign secretary David Miliband said some Conservatives were "spoiling for a fight that would bring Britain out of the European Union".
"The trap is that in the end the other countries will go ahead on their own and not just decide economic policy for the eurozone, they'll end up designing policy for the whole of the European Union."The trap is that in the end the other countries will go ahead on their own and not just decide economic policy for the eurozone, they'll end up designing policy for the whole of the European Union.
"And that will put Britain in the second division, a place that it's tried to avoid for the last 40 years.""And that will put Britain in the second division, a place that it's tried to avoid for the last 40 years."
Last month, more than 80 Conservative MPs defied the government and called for a referendum on the UK's membership of the EU.Last month, more than 80 Conservative MPs defied the government and called for a referendum on the UK's membership of the EU.